The Big Story: Brand-ishing New Tricks And Old

The Big Story is a breezy new podcast featuring a roundtable of AdExchanger editors talking about the biggest stories from the past week. It is available wherever you subscribe to podcasts.

Is your suitcase packed for your Labor Day getaway? Don’t forget your 50 SPF zinc oxide sunscreen. And did you download enough apps to keep the kids amused during the three-hour wait in standstill traffic?

For you, we offer the latest episode of “The Big Story.” This discussion about branding focuses on a trend, two years in the making, of brands hiring data-driven user-acquisition experts from gaming apps. The movement speaks to the changing needs of brand advertisers. But at the same time, moving user acquisition people into the world of branding isn’t without its friction points.

The AdExchanger team also looks at product placement, where the ultra-traditional technique has taken on new life as video-on-demand companies such as Netflix, Hulu and Amazon seek to fund their secret sauce: hot content.

In a world where audiences are wary of ad breaks, can innovative product placement eventually serve as a replacement? And what role can new technologies play to make product placement even more effective than it’s been in the past?